Taking Schizophrenia on a Holiday

My mom and I decided to go to a wedding, visit my sister and then visit a friend. I was geared up for the holiday and excited to be going with my mom who I had been on holidays with before. We are good travelling buddies.

How would I prepare for the holiday?

Who decided to come with us but an old illness I often have symptoms of called schizophrenia. The symptoms include feeling overwhelmed, experiencing anxiety and hearing a lot of intriguing voices. First it warned me that it might cause some problems. I bet you may be wondering just what is different about a holiday with that schizo illness.

Planning is a big deal. If I plan my holiday I feel I can handle it better. With my stress level down there is less possibility for symptoms. Since it was an afternoon reception I was pretty pumped that it would be easier than a night wedding. Since we were with my sister I was pretty sure I’d be able to take a rest if I needed one. Finally, since I was going to visit with a very good friend I knew I’d get a chance to air my emotions. It looked good to me!

I had to order some anxiety calming medication ahead of time just to be prepared. I felt that at least if I had the medication there was a plan in place in case I needed to calm down or needed a break from hyper-awareness. When I go on vacation I make sure I have my wallet and my medication and everything else doesn’t matter as much.

How would I deal with problems as they came up?

When we got a little lost and couldn’t find the reception – I just loved that my mom was okay. She felt that we’d get there eventually and wasn’t that upset. We pulled over twice to look at a map and asked two people for directions because our directions were wrong. Now this is potential for great anxiety for me but I got through it alright.

Experience, some new places were a lot of fun

The wedding and reception were beautiful. Being around so many people was alright for a little while. A couple of people talked to me but mostly I was left to enjoy the speeches, the food and to appreciate that I had a home-made gift I was giving to the bride and groom.

The time with my sister was good although I was tired. We went to the beautiful butterfly sanctuary and we all enjoyed it. It was my idea to go there. They thought it was a great idea. We went shopping and I got a few clothes. Was I ever excited to buy some clothes in a bigger centre.

Symptoms came and went but I just kept going and looking forward to better times ahead. I also shared some of the symptoms with my family during the trip and that seemed to help me make light of the frustrating symptoms. It’s nice to talk out loud about what is happening sometimes.

A highlight of the trip

Visiting with my friend was so nice. We dipped our feet into the water pool in front of the city hall. We took pictures and I accidentally walked under a water fountain which lead to great laughs. My mom took us out for a fancy dinner. By that time I was very tired but loving being with my mom and my friend. I was overwhelmed by the real people’s voices all around me at the restaurant but we ordered veggie pizza and a couple veggie dishes and I felt proud to be eating vegetarian.

We drove home later that night and I enjoyed the drive although I don’t remember it too well. I was reflecting on all the fun things we did.

And it all came together

When I got home I rested and slept a lot and am now going to make a scrap-book of the trip. You see, I don’t get a chance to go away that often so it is a big deal for me to get to travel and see some beautiful parts of this interesting world.

Some of the symptoms on the trip were annoying and I must admit I am left feeling a little gypped out of some good times. However, once I experienced the good things from the trip the schizo symptoms fell to the back ground. I could then still mostly enjoy such a great opportunity. Thanks to everyone that helped to make it happen!

I encourage others with this illness to try travelling. It helps to make good memories!

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About friendofsnowflake

It is my pleasure to welcome you to my Blog! My name is Melanie and my nic-name Snowflake as you may already know. I'm excited to share some of my ideas and writings with you. It's interesting how psychological concepts can make things a little clearer. I have a psychology degree from the University of Waterloo. It is my hope that I can share some knowledge with you.
Some of my hobbies include playing piano, guitar, drawing and more recently beading. It also really interesting to recieve comments from the amazing people who read my Blog. I hope if you feel inclined that you will tell me a bit about yourself.
I would like to think that some special time spent off the net is also important for you or me. In this time you could sing or dance or just sit with a book.
In the mean-time it's nice to have met you because there is some quality time spent on the net. I hope you have had time to look at your favourite song or look up your favourite author. My favorite song is True Colour by Cyndi Lauper and my favourite author is Gretchin Rubin.
I feel gratitude that I can write this Blog. I hope you come back and see what new Blog is here over time. In the mean time have a great day and stay you!